THE Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has made progress in the safety of its services since its last inspection ruled it to be inadequate – but it is still not good enough, according to the hospitals watchdog.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) this week published a new report on the trust - which provides services at Mount Vernon Hospital in Northwood and The Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge – after its safety was re-inspected in May.

Inspectors found the trust had responded appropriately to key issues highlighted in the initial inspection in October last year.

The rating for the safety of services was upgraded from Inadequate to Requires improvement.

The CQC report reads: “We found that the trust… had taken significant action to address estates deficiencies highlighted by the previous inspection.

“In some services however, custom and practice around medicines management and infection prevention and control had not improved, despite systems and processes being implemented to deliver changes in practice.”

Shane DeGaris, chief executive of the Trust, said he recognised they had much more to do.

He said: “We are pleased that the inspectors have acknowledged the significant progress that has been made since their initial inspection.

“However they identified areas where we still need to further tighten-up procedures so that every single one of our staff follows best practice at all times, ensuring patients receive the best possible care.”

Domains other than safety were not re-inspected. In the last inspection, effectiveness, responsiveness and leadership were found to require improvement and the caring rating was good.

The overall trust rating remains at Requires improvement.

The report can be read in full at www.cqc.org.uk